Photos show widespread damage at US sites from Iranian attacks

BBC | Kayla Epstein, Bernd Debusmann Jr

Photos made public by CBS News today display severe damage to a number of United States military bases in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait caused by attacks carried out by Iran. The photographs show trailers that have been flattened, buildings that have been destroyed, and a Boeing E-3 Sentry early-warning aircraft which has been cut off at Prince Sultan Air Force Base. The level of physical damage is in line with a report by a Pentagon watchdog indicating that hundreds of buildings in the Middle East have been affected.

The total value of the lost equipment has now reached $3.7 billion, prompting the military to consider replacing systems that are no longer being produced with more up-to-date ones like the E-7. By June, the overall cost of the war had amounted to $33.4 billion. Because of this, shifting key resources from the Indo-Pacific area to address Iran has lowered the military's state of readiness with respect to both China and Russia. This strategic problem has arisen at the same time as greater domestic political pressure on the Trump administration, reaching its peak with a third vote in the House to halt unauthorized military actions.

Comment

The destruction of a Boeing E-3 Sentry at Prince Sultan Air Force Base demonstrates just how vulnerable high-value airborne early warning and control systems are when they come within the range of Iranian precision-guided weapons. Because these large, non-manoeuvrable aircraft require a great deal of ground support equipment, they act as stationary targets during the first missile salvo. Whenever forward operating bases lack robust and actively operated air defence systems or have hardening shelters, the important assets at the theatre level cannot survive a pre-emptive strike.

The not having these aircraft means that the defensive coverage already offered by the rest of the regional surveillance network is reduced and it therefore becomes necessary to make use of carrier-based systems or to reposition forces from other areas. Replacing these older aircraft with the E-7 Wedgetail will place long-term strain on both the budget and the training of the United States Air Force. Eventually, the coverage gaps that arise in the Persian Gulf will lead to a shorter early-warning period for detecting low-altitude cruise missiles directed at important Saudi energy facilities.

Strategic Question for Discussion

So how will the United States Air Force make up the early-warning coverage gaps in the Persian Gulf if the Boeing E-3 Sentry is destroyed at Prince Sultan Air Force Base and the aircraft is then replaced by the E-7 Wedgetail?

It will most likely be necessary to make use of the carrier-based E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft temporarily in order to guarantee continuous radar surveillance over the Persian Gulf; but this solution would place additional operational pressure on the United States Navy's carrier strike groups and could thus mean that a decision would have to be made between carrying out maritime security operations in the Indo-Pacific. Alternatively, the gap might result in an increased reliance on land-based radar stations and on intelligence-sharing agreements with regional partners such as Saudi Arabia.

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